


Right Where I Belong

by MistakeMakingInProgress



Category: X-Ray & Vav (Cartoon)
Genre: Communication, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Late Night Conversations, Light Angst, M/M, Post-Canon, Romance, yknow like the kind that makes healthy relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-28
Updated: 2018-07-28
Packaged: 2019-06-17 14:36:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15463563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MistakeMakingInProgress/pseuds/MistakeMakingInProgress
Summary: Vav wakes up with a heavy head and heart in the middle of the night. So he goes to the one man who eases his mind better than he himself can.





	Right Where I Belong

**Author's Note:**

> this is very loosely a song fic tbfh, the inspiration for this came from Nine Inch Nails' song, entitled 'Right Where It Belongs V2' and it really sets the mood for this entire thing. highly recommend listening to it for the duration of this writing piece. now enjoy some gays

Vav could make out the moon just barely hanging in the top of the window frame, grey moonlight filtering into the living room. The TV had long been turned off, their Xbox returned to its dormant state despite their controllers being scattered over the carpet in front of them. He guessed from how dark out it was that it likely was some time past midnight. And he'd been stirred awake by some disturbance. Not in the streets, no. Somewhere in his chest, it felt tight with uncertainty, like a twisted ribbon. He sighed slowly, one hand moving to his best mate's hair. Ray had passed out long before him, bored by his choice in movie after their long GTA session. He was still dead asleep, glasses pushed askew on his face and a guttural snore coming from him with each exhale. Despite the comforting pressure of another person, Vav still felt.. Wrong. He could feel the oncoming sinking feeling of some kind of sadness, perhaps. Either that or his anxiety was acting up again.

Carefully, he shimmied out from under Ray, sliding him down to lay flat on the couch. His partner grumbled before rolling over so his back faced Vav, before sighing and settling back down. Vav silently padded into his room to retrieve a blanket, draping it over his friend's sleeping form. After pulling his glasses off and setting them down on the table, he tentatively crept from the room and out to the hall. It took muscle memory and mild intuition to remember where the bathroom was in the dim light, but he sneaked inside to take a gander at his face. He winced at the sight of dark circles and darkened eyes. It was going to be one of those days..

Vav pushed the door shut and turned the faucet on, scooping up handfuls of water and splashing them onto his face. The shock of cold water jolted him further awake, but at least he felt a little more alive. He repeated this a few more times before turning the sink off, drying his face with the given hand towel. It'd helped a little at best, but the funk hadn't faded enough for him to be at ease, let alone return to bed.

He walked back out from the washroom and into his bedroom, patting around for his phone. 2:43 in the morning. He unceremoniously dropped onto his bed, flopping over the blankets. Nothing interesting or truly engaging seemed to be happening on what social medias he had, and Ash's blog hadn't been updated since the day before. He sighed, thumbing over his contacts absentmindedly until he froze in his scrolling. He hovered over 'Madsy ♛' before biting his lip and tapping on it. Their last conversation over text had been three days ago.

-[hey, mads? are you awake?]  
[I am. Working late at the labs while what's-her-face isn't in.]  
-[i couldn't fall back asleep. feel bloody awful.]  
[Do you want me to come over?]  
-[..can i come over to the labs instead? x-ray's asleep.]  
[Of course. I'm in my office.]

Vav gently sat up, snatching his jacket from its place over his headboard and slipping it on. He searched around in his nightstand drawer until he pulled off a scrap piece from his notepad, quickly scribbling out an excuse for going out so late. A precaution, in case Ray stirred awake and realized he was alone in their apartment. As he passed the couch, he swung around and slipped the note underneath Ray's glasses. Ray hadn't moved from his spot, save for an arm thrown across his face. He quietly fumbled with his shoes before pulling his keys from their hook, and creeping out of their shared apartment.

 

The walk was sluggish, Vav's feet shuffling over the pavement. He half expected some other villain to jump him while he was in civvies, but his walk remained uninterrupted even as he went through Monarch Labs' doors. All but a few lights were on, the dreary lighting only adding to the heavy cloud in Vav's chest. He shuffled to the elevator before pressing the button for the highest floor, ignoring the 'Do Not Disturb' status displayed above it. The vibration of the ascending elevator offered the slightest comfort, and Vav tiredly blinked at the door. He could vaguely see his reflection in the chrome walls; a disheveled man in a thin jacket and jeans, with messy hair and tired eyes. A right pitiful sight, he decided.

He tilted his head back up when the doors slid open, the elevator's hum falling silent. He could see the king at his desk, papers all across the surface and the lamp bent above them. Vav carefully stepped out, rubbing at his arms. He'd barely realized he still felt cold from the chilly night outside. The CEO glanced up from his work before sitting up straight and putting his pen down.

"You look exhausted." Vav nodded wordlessly, carefully walking across the room. "Nightmare?"

"No, just woke up like this," Vav admitted, his voice croaky. The king stood up from his chair to wrap his arms around his lover, his grip encircling him easily. Vav hooked his arms around his neck, burying his face in his chest. He could only blink blearily as firm hands rubbed his back.

"Do you want to relax on the couch for a little while?" he asked. Vav gently tugged at his shirt as his answer, pulling them both over to the soft furniture. The villain didn't resist the needy pull of the other, gently dropping down with him. Vav curled up against the warm body, snuggling up against his torso.

"...Hey, Ryan?"

"Yes, love?"

"Sometimes, this whole city makes me really tired."

"..That's fair." Vav gently closed his eyes as his hair was ruffled softly. "I could take you away from here, some time."

"This place would go tits up without me around," he joked, mumbling into the heat of Ryan's chest.

"It wouldn't be hard to make the city quiet. But of course, you wouldn't want that if it was forced."

"Mm mm," he agreed, tilting his head up to look at him. With the moonlight shining through the tall windows, it gave the king's eyes a silvery shine. The stripe of electric blue around his pupil was highlighted, and despite the ghastly expression everyone claimed they held, Vav only saw soft adoration in them. "A vacation would probably do me some good. X-Ray too, but he's always been too antsy to relax for long."

"If we took time off, he wouldn't be coming," the monarch snorted. "I'd want you all to myself, on some warm beach far from here. X-Ray could bother Mogar for help if he were desperate enough."

"I'm pretty sure Mogar an' him would get into a kerfuffle over the slightest thing," Vav scoffed, glancing to the left of Ryan's head. The clouds had gently parted, some stars peering out from behind their thick blanket. "He'd paste him worse than when we foiled his earwigging at the restaurant."

"Well, he'd have to make due," Ryan mumbled, nuzzling at Vav's jawbone. Vav's eyes drifted shut with another soft breath.

"You were working when I came in, weren't you?"

"Nothing more important than you."

"I think I'm okay now." He opened his eyes again, looking out to the night sky. The clouds had faded into the dark completely, stars glittering all across the horizon. The knot in his chest had loosened, like an unraveling rope falling away from a pole.

"Hey, look at me?" Vav flicked his eyes to meet Ryan's, a hand cupping his cheek and thumbing at it. "I love you. You'll be okay."

"..Love you too, Mad's," he replied, softly pulling at his shirt again. The other rumbled with a soft laugh before leaning in to catch his lips. The kiss was firm, like a statement or confession. Vav would have been happy for the warm breath to stay, but he knew it couldn't last forever. They gently parted, Ryan giving him one more peck. The pressure in his core finally floated away, his head clear of the invading static. "Can I snuggle with your suit jacket, while you work?"

"Of course." They untangled from each other, and Ryan walked to his chair to pull his coat off before tossing it to him. Vav caught it easily, still feeling the lingering warmth radiating off it. It faintly reeked of his cologne. The hero slid back down on the couch cushions and covered up with his love's coat, folding his arms under his head as he glanced to him. The king had already settled back down in his chair, organizing his papers.

"Hey, Mad's?"

"Mhm?" He looked up from his desk, papers still in his hands.

"I'm a right spawny bastard to have met you, you know."

"..I should be the one saying that. Go to sleep, love, I'll wake you up when we should leave."

"M'kay," he answered, snuggling into the couch. His gaze drifted back to the windows. The stars and moon were unrivaled by the city lights below, with no clouds in sight to block out their glow. Vav softly exhaled, closing his eyes and simply listening to the light tap and clicks of a pen and the scribbling of writing across papers. The sound was calming enough he didn't keep track of when he stopped hearing it, sleep pulling him back into a comfortable void of thoughtless rest. He was safe here, in the midnight hours, where everything was quiet and stagnant. 


End file.
